Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz top French Open favorites but we must not write Rafael Nadal off: Casper Ruud

Casper Ruud doesn't consider himself the top favorite at the 2023 French Open even though he played the final in 2022.

Ruud has a lot of points to defend starting from Roland Garros, where he lost to Rafael Nadal in the final of last year's edition in straight sets (6-3, 6-3, 6-0).

The World No. 4 is currently playing at the Italian Open, where he defeated Arthur Rinderknech in the second round (6-4, 6-0), Alexander Bublik in the third (6-1, 4-6, 7-6), and Laslo Djere in the fourth (6-1, 6-3). He's now set to face Francisco Cerundolo in the quarterfinals.

After his win over Djere, Casper Ruud gave praise to the Serb and analyzed what happened on the court.

"Laslo is a good player, we know each other from before. I didn't start the match that well getting broken early. We're both clay court specialists that like to have long rallies, so this was a perfect match for me in the end. He was struggling a bit."

"I was expecting an impulse from him at the start of the second set, but I managed to control the situation. He beat me at our last match, but I found a way (to beat him) this time," Casper Ruud said according to "Telegraf".

Ruud will have his eyes set on Roland Garros after the Rome Masters, but has other players in mind as favorites.

"No, I don't consider myself the top favorite. There's Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz. Novak is the favorite everywhere he plays, that's the situation here in Rome, as well as at Roland Garros. Alcaraz too, he's young, he hits the ball hard and moves fast. You don't have to be a genius to know whose has the best chances (to win the title)," Ruud stated.

The 14-time champion of the second Grand Slam of the year, Rafael Nadal, is not yet confirmed to be playing this year because of an injury, but Ruud urged fans not to write him off.

"Of course, we can't write off Rafael Nadal. We don't know how prepared he will be and whether he'll even be able to play, but if he does, he'll certainly be one of the favorites. I'm just trying to give my best during the clay court season and keep my ranking," the 24-year-old said.

Casper Ruud further commented on playing in a world where Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal are no longer there. With Federer retired, Nadal battling injuries, and Djokovic edging closer to the end of his own career, men's tennis will finally experience a time where the Big-3 no longer exist to dominate the game as they have done for the last two decades.

The Norwegian thinks that everything will go even when the trio are not there, a sentiment he extended to the French Open as well. Whether Nadal shows up in Paris to defend his title or not, Ruud believes that the tournament will go on as it always has.

"I've gotten used to them ever since I started playing on the ATP tour and at the Grand Slams. Roger was still playing when I started, he was winning some Slams here and there, Novak had a problems during COVID-19, and Rafa has had injury woes."

"The tournament goes on regardless of everything, regardless of abscences. Still, seing Rafa at Roland Garros is something special. That's the history of our sport. All eyes will be on him if he shows up. If he doesn't, that will surely motivate all the other players", Casper Ruud concluded.

Casper Ruud takes on Francisco Cerundolo in Italian Open quarterfinals

Internazionali BNL D'Italia 2023 - Day Nine

Following his victory over Laslo Djere, Casper Ruud will take on Francisco Cerundolo in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Italian Open. The Argentine pulled off an upset in the fourth round, stunning Jannik Sinner in three sets.

Ruud, interestingly, trails 1-2 in the head-to-head against Cerundolo, having lost both of their most recent clashes on clay -- at the 2022 Sweden Open and the 2023 Barcelona Open.